Safety Advise Following Other boats to camp

[bbheli]

What's the safest way to follow a trail of boats to camp site. Wondering if driving in the other boats wake makes for a good bad or unsafe tactic as I never did that before but told that's the plan to navigate to camp site. Also boats are all different size,

[REW]

BB,
Normally when going to a different spot, the smoothest ride will always be in the wake of the boat ahead of you.

Just be nice and do not get too close. Remember, if the boat in front of you stops suddenly - like hitting a rock pile, you want to be far enough back that you do not run into him.

Good luck

[kzoofisher]

What REW said. Our first year on the boat in we do we all ran in a line a hundred yards or so apart and put good tracks on our sonars. Since yhen we don’t need to but do it anyway in case someone has trouble. The year we pulled out on the last day with fog and 30 yards visibility those tracks were priceless.

[REW]

This story reminds me of a time when I was fishing the Canadian international US border.
We were fishing in US waters, but at times the bodies of water would put us on or near the Canadian border.

One day we had gone into a different area and were fishing around some islands. It was a gray somewhat foggy day.

As we were fishing, I could hear a plane coming up from some distance away. I looked up and recognized the markings for the Canadian border patrol.

I said, "I wonder."

I ran over to my other gps unit which had a better display showing the international border. I said to my fishing partner, "quick, reel up your lines, we have gotten a 1/2 mile into Canadian waters. Time for us to turn tail and run."

Another boat in our party were fishing near by. When they heard my motor start up they looked over and I motioned to the plane - and pointed south to the border that we had drifted over.

I was looking at my gps as I was driving with my throttle maxed out to clear Canadian waters as quickly. There was a small gap between two islands that would cut ten minutes off the run, so I aimed for that gap.

Our fishing partners in the other boat were essentially following in our exact gap.

However, when they flew through the gap between the islands, they must have been over by about 2 feet and their lower unit glanced off a boulder that was just below the surface. Apparently, I missed the boulder by a foot or so, but our partner's were not quite so lucky.

After we got back to the resort, we docked and went to check out our partners motor and prop.
He bent the skeg quite a bit and totaled the prop. So, he put on a spare prop and indicated that he would get the skeg straightened when he got back in case it broke off and would have to have a new skeg welded back to the motor.

For the rest of the week, his motor had a significant pull when running, but the motor and gear case internals were fine.

Later on, we heard that when he had gone in for the skeg repair, that the shop, sliced off the skeg cleanly and welded a new skeg back to the lower unit and after cleaning up the weld and polished it out and repainted the skeg - it looked like new again.

The object of the post is to simply say, the even though one follows the path of a boat in front of you does not necessarily guarantee - "Safe Passage."

[rwl]

Originally Posted by REW

This story reminds me of a time when I was fishing the Canadian international US border.
We were fishing in US waters, but at times the bodies of water would put us on or near the Canadian border.

One day we had gone into a different area and were fishing around some islands. It was a gray somewhat foggy day.

As we were fishing, I could hear a plane coming up from some distance away. I looked up and recognized the markings for the Canadian border patrol.

I said, "I wonder."

I ran over to my other gps unit which had a better display showing the international border. I said to my fishing partner, "quick, reel up your lines, we have gotten a 1/2 mile into Canadian waters. Time for us to turn tail and run."

Another boat in our party were fishing near by. When they heard my motor start up they looked over and I motioned to the plane - and pointed south to the border that we had drifted over.

I was looking at my gps as I was driving with my throttle maxed out to clear Canadian waters as quickly. There was a small gap between two islands that would cut ten minutes off the run, so I aimed for that gap.

Our fishing partners in the other boat were essentially following in our exact gap.

However, when they flew through the gap between the islands, they must have been over by about 2 feet and their lower unit glanced off a boulder that was just below the surface. Apparently, I missed the boulder by a foot or so, but our partner's were not quite so lucky.

After we got back to the resort, we docked and went to check out our partners motor and prop.
He bent the skeg quite a bit and totaled the prop. So, he put on a spare prop and indicated that he would get the skeg straightened when he got back in case it broke off and would have to have a new skeg welded back to the motor.

For the rest of the week, his motor had a significant pull when running, but the motor and gear case internals were fine.

Later on, we heard that when he had gone in for the skeg repair, that the shop, sliced off the skeg cleanly and welded a new skeg back to the lower unit and after cleaning up the weld and polished it out and repainted the skeg - it looked like new again.

The object of the post is to simply say, the even though one follows the path of a boat in front of you does not necessarily guarantee - "Safe Passage."

Ouch, the dreaded small gap between two islands, sounds like LOTW. I have good paper maps and good GPS and chips for Canada, and would never drive with my throttle maxed out through a small gap between two islands just to save 10 minutes. Maybe idle through and then get back up on plane would be a better idea.

Good thing nobody was hurt. A spare lower unit would have kept him from having a significant pull the rest of the week.

[REW]

RWL,
With a border patrol plane fast approaching, I did not want to be in foreign waters any longer than I would have to be.

[kzoofisher]

I think I might rather be caught accidentally crossing the border than caught fleeing the CBP and crossing the border. I hate cavity searches even when I’m paying for them.

[rwl]

Originally Posted by REW

RWL,
With a border patrol plane fast approaching, I did not want to be in foreign waters any longer than I would have to be.

Oh, I thought for some reason you were running all the way back to the camp. You had said you were only 1/2 mile from the border, if your boat goes 30MPH, in 1 minute you are back on your side. If they wanted to they probably had all the evidence they needed to follow you wherever they wanted anyway. I always see guys running on the Cops show, because they were scared and not thinking clearly (or on drugs or have a warrant, LOL). It usually ends bad...

[bbheli]

Originally Posted by rwl

Ouch, the dreaded small gap between two islands, sounds like LOTW. I have good paper maps and good GPS and chips for Canada, and would never drive with my throttle maxed out through a small gap between two islands just to save 10 minutes. Maybe idle through and then get back up on plane would be a better idea.

Good thing nobody was hurt. A spare lower unit would have kept him from having a significant pull the rest of the week.

What do you consider small gaps on LOTW ? what islands were they.

[bbheli]

Originally Posted by kzoofisher

What REW said. Our first year on the boat in we do we all ran in a line a hundred yards or so apart and put good tracks on our sonars. Since yhen we don’t need to but do it anyway in case someone has trouble. The year we pulled out on the last day with fog and 30 yards visibility those tracks were priceless.

Thanks, that 100 yards gives me a good reference. I assume smaller boats would be best in front of me and them behind the guide boat.